‘Al-Qaeda militants capture two towns in southern Yemen’

Al-Qaeda militants have captured two towns in Yemen’s southern province of Abyan amid unrelenting Saudi military aggression against the war-torn country, residents say.

Militants of the al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) launched a surprise attack on Zinjibar and Jaar early on Wednesday morning and overran the towns after defeating the forces of the Popular Committees loyal to the Houthi Ansarullah movement.

The militants then announced over loudspeakers that they had seized the towns, and set up checkpoints at the towns’ entry points.

Abdullatif al-Sayed, the head of the Popular Committees in Abyan, said local fighters had informed officials of the situation and tried to repel the raid but had been unsuccessful.